At first, the hope was Kris Letang would recover and enjoy a full and satisfying life with his wife, daughter and family. Then, word emerged the defenseman could return to the NHL again, you know, someday... in 2014-15, maybe. Now, not even two months after suffering a stroke, he is more than toying with the idea of making a comeback for the Pittsburgh Penguins this regular season.

As discussed by Joe Starkey of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the defenseman, with the doctors giving him the thumbs-up, has the call on if or when he wanted to return to practice. Encouraged by the latest medical assessments, the Penguins wouldn’t stand in Letang’s way. Nor should they, contends Starkey.

Letang had five doctors looking after him, with team physician Dr. Dharmesh Vyas in charge.

"One for my brain, one for my heart, one for my vestibular [system] -- everything," Letang said, according to the newspaper. "It wasn't [left] to me if I was allowed to skate. They made that decision. It was [left] to me if I wanted to skate."

There’s still no telling if this even happens this season. However, tracking Letang’s progress thus far, we’re willing -- with admittedly zero medical insight whatsoever -- to project a comeback before next fall. And everyone, the player and the coaching staff included, would prefer to have their top defenseman back before the playoffs get underway. So, yeah, barring a setback, we see Letang back at it in a couple of weeks.

From a fantasy perspective, it’s an intriguing situation, because we’re discussing one of the most prolific performers of recent seasons. Owned in less than half of ESPN.com leagues, Letang could prove to be a formidable force down the final stretch. Those in head-to-head leagues, in particular, might want to invest in the offensive defenseman immediately.

• Following the stingy performance Anton Khudobin (owned in 54 percent of ESPN.com leagues) put on against the Columbus Blue Jackets Tuesday, we’re supposing Cam Ward -- who wasn’t great in his previous outing for the Carolina Hurricanes -- won’t see as much action in the next week or so. But the Hurricanes face the Chicago Blackhawks and Winnipeg Jets in back-to-back games Friday and Saturday, and the Blackhawks lead the NHL in goals per game. So we'll have another clue on the situation then.

“[Fontaine] showed a lot. We’ll have to make sure he stays on it. He’s got quick feet but he makes quick decisions. To play with guys like that (Moulson and Koivu), you need skill but you have to think the game at a high level," Yeo said. "He showed he’s capable of that tonight.”

While Fontaine (owned in less than 1 percent of ESPN.com leagues) was the only Wild skater to be completely excluded from power-play action Tuesday, that will change if the 26-year-old winger continues to impress.

• Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News suggests the corps of Dallas Stars defensemen is “unnerved” by the presence of newbie veteran Tim Thomas (owned in 71 percent of ESPN.com leagues) in net. Mind you, the Dallas defense wasn’t exactly at its collective best in front of Kari Lehtonen (owned in 98 percent of ESPN.com leagues) Tuesday, either. It will be fascinating to see if/how the defensemen's level of comfort influences coach Lindy Ruff’s strategies where starting goalie decisions are concerned.

• While the Vancouver Canucks are feeling some heat for not promoting Nicklas Jensen earlier, there’s little argument the rookie forward has brought some pop to the squad’s top line, and the offense in general. Competing with Henrik Sedin and Alex Burrows, the 2011 first-round draft pick has two goals and two assists in six games. After an initial two-game warm-up, he’s averaged more than 20 minutes per game, including precious time with the man-advantage. And the 21-year-old is available in more than 96 percent of ESPN.com leagues.

• “Teravainen Watch” continues in Chicago. Still no definitive word on when winger Teuvo Teravainen will play his first NHL game, but he’s scheduled to arrive in North America by week’s end. The 19-year-old prospect notched 44 points in 49 games with Jokerit in the Finnish league this season. A dynasty-league fantasy asset for down the road, Teravainen could be worth scooping up now, if you have little left to lose this campaign.